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Kuntz Stadium near downtown Indianapolis is set to host college rugby’s biggest weekend, in the midst of what’s expected to be a $45 million, multiyear overhaul to the venue.
The College Rugby Association of America will hold a couple dozen matches, including six championships, at the venue Friday through Sunday. The organization is the governing body for collegiate-level rugby, as the sport is not sanctioned by the NCAA and is generally not treated as a varsity or scholarship-eligible sport by colleges.
The championship weekend marks the first in a three-year deal for the event struck earlier this year between the rugby association, or CRAA, and Riverside Sports Properties, which manages the stadium. The Indiana Sports Corp., which helps procure major sporting events for Indianapolis and other parts of the state, was also deeply involved in the deal.
The championships marks the first national sporting event that Riverside Sports has secured for the venue, 1502 W. 16th St., since taking over its management from Indianapolis Parks and Recreation nearly one year ago.
This weekend’s event is expected to draw thousands of visitors to Indianapolis, although event organizers also expect local rugby fans—and sports fans in general—to take in the action.
Rugby’s popularity is growing quickly among youth and high schoolers across the state, with many schools and communities instituting programs to facilitate play.
“We want to bring the sport to more than just rugby people, and we’re hoping that by bringing it to Indianapolis, we can get the community to come out and see how great the sport is and how hard these athletes work,” said Paul Santinelli, a member of the College Rugby Association of America’s executive committee.
The organization has held its championships in Houston in recent years, but the heat and other weather factors complicated planning, Santinelli said.
“Kuntz Stadium represents a tremendous opportunity to serve the Midwest rugby community and establish a true home for college rugby in the heartland of America,” Paul Keeler, president of CRAA, said in a news release earlier this year. “This facility will not only elevate the game but also foster a sense of pride and belonging for rugby players, fans, and future generations throughout the region.”
Updates planned for Kuntz Stadium
The organization’s decision to sign on for a three-year term comes as work continues on improving the stadium grounds. The facility is also set to host the USA Rugby Club Championships from May 15-16.
“I wouldn’t say it’s the dog that caught the car, but it’s pretty close,” Brian Williams, a partner in Riverside Sports Properties, told IBJ. “It took us some time to work with the neighborhood, to help them understand the vision and get their support, then to work with the city to gain their support … but [now] we have commitments from two major rugby tournaments to come to Indianapolis this May.”
The stadium is eventually expected to receive updated turf and drainage as part of the project, with its capacity growing from 5,000 seats to more than 8,000 seats. The updates will also include several hospitality suites and a press box area, as well as a new entry pavilion.
The western soccer field is expected to be used for practices and qualifying competition, as well as for neighborhood activities, and the existing concession areas office space and locker rooms are all being updated.
Some changes like the lighting system and new fencing are already in place, as well as fresh coats of paint, new men’s and women’s bathrooms, updated locker rooms and a new press and coach viewing area atop the stadium‘s grandstands. Some of the field updates have also already occurred.
“We prioritize those things that we knew would be important for the spectators in the stands and the athletes, like the locker rooms and training areas,” Williams said. “We’ll have hot water in the locker rooms showers and they’ll be lit and accessible—some crazy ideas, right, for a sports facility to have hot water in the showers.”
The remaining scope of the work at Kuntz is still expected to occur over several phases.
Kuntz opened in 1987 and was home to the IHSAA soccer state championships from 1995 to 2012 before they moved to Michael A. Carroll Stadium, but has seen few improvements and minimal upkeep in the years since. The site also was home for 10 years to Indy City Futbol, an adult recreational summer soccer league. It’s also now home to the Indianapolis Alley Cats ultimate frisbee team.
The future of rugby in Indianapolis
Rugby generally has two separate groupings, with 7s consisting of seven players on each team in shorter and often faster-paced games, and 15s, which is the more traditional form of the game that lasts longer and includes 15 players on each side.
This weekend’s event will feature matches on both fields at Kuntz Stadium, including a mix of men’s and women’s 7s pool matches on Friday to determine participants in the quarterfinals and other knock-out rounds later in the weekend. Championships for the women will be held on Saturday, while men’s championships will be split between Saturday and Sunday.
Tickets start at $5 for children age 17 and under for a single day of matches or $10 for the whole weekend. Adult tickets are $15 for a day or $30 for the full weekend.
Williams said Riverside Sports continues to push toward its initial goal of getting Indianapolis into the conversation as a home for national governing body USA Rugby, as well as for a potential bid to host matches in the 2031 and 2033 Rugby World Cup events. But he’s also interested in Kuntz becoming a home for other sports like lacrosse, field hockey and ultimate frisbee.
”I think you’re going to see much more rugby there over the next three to five years, not just collegiate rugby, but potentially [professional] matches, tournaments, youth and high school rugby,” said CRAA’s Santinelli. “And if it becomes the epicenter for rugby, how great would that be for Indianapolis?”
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The old CYO field named after a great, great man…Bill Kuntz!!!
Good historic call on the CYO Field John S.!
The local catholic schools played their football games and track meets there from at least the 1950’s into the 1970’s. Indy Parks converted it into a soccer stadium and was used for the Pan Am games in 1987, when it was named Kuntz Stadium. Not sure when it was actually built?
Played football there Friday nights for Cathedral when I was in high school. Cathedral was all boys school at 14th & Meridian. Bill Kuntz was a great man for sure. Bill Sahm too.